On March 22, Russia suffered its worst terrorist attack since the Beslan school siege of 2004 in Chechnya. The four alleged perpetrators, all of whom are citizens of Tajikistan, killed over 140 people and left many more injured in an attack on a popular concert venue, Crocus City Hall, on the outskirts of Moscow. As … Read more
After four extremists stormed the Crocus City Hall, a music venue in Krasnogorsk on the outskirts of Moscow, with assault rifles and incendiary devices, the world was shocked as footage emerged of crowds fleeing the scene amid a hail of bullets and bodies. Confirming the carnage as its handiwork, Islamic State (IS) media outlets claimed … Read more
The March 22 terror attack in Russia, on the outskirts of Moscow, which killed 139 people has brought attention back to the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP). Notwithstanding the Kremlin’s proclivity to link the attackers to Ukraine and not ISKP, the group’s involvement in the attack is clear from its claim and the evidence that … Read more
On March 22, 2024, four masked men wielding automatic weapons opened fire on concertgoers at the Crocus City Hall outside of Moscow. They then set the concert hall on fire. At least 137 people were killed in the brutal terrorist attack, with more than 180 injured. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, and … Read more
The devastating March 22 terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk, on the outskirts of Moscow, allegedly carried out by four citizens of Tajikistan, vividly demonstrates the threats posed by Central Asian jihadi terrorism and Sunni Islamist extremism. The shooting at the concert hall sadly confirmed a security alert issued by the U.S. … Read more
On March 9, Kazakhstan’s National Security Committee (KNB) confirmed media reports that two Kazakh citizens had been killed by law enforcement in Russia. Two days earlier, on March 7, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said it had stopped an Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) cell from carrying out a terrorist attack targeting a synagogue. … Read more
Although Turkey regards the post-Soviet countries of Central Asia as its strategic allies, viewing them as “brothers with common historical, linguistic, and cultural ties,” and confidently assumes the role of a “big brother” (Büyük Abi) to politically and economically integrate the vast Turkic world, it has paradoxically encountered security threats from Central Asian Salafi-Jihadi groups … Read more
Despite Gaza’s great distance from Central Asia, the Israel-Hamas war has had an impact on the religious and security landscape in the region. While al-Qaida-affiliated Central Asian Sunni extremist groups in Syria and Afghanistan limited their engagement to expressing support for Palestinian Muslims through ideologically strong statements, the Tajik militants of the Islamic State Khorasan … Read more
Undeniably, all communities in Afghanistan have suffered tremendously, but the Hazara minority has suffered disproportionately because of its distinct ethnic and religious identity. As an ethnoreligious minority, the Hazaras of Afghanistan have endured a long history of discrimination and systematic persecution. The Hazara community has suffered from enslavement, mass killings, and forced displacement throughout the … Read more
Advertisement In a single day last week, Pakistan’s faced two deadly terrorist attacks, one in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and the other in Balochistan province. Together, the bombings claimed the lives of around 60 people and injured dozens of others. It provided a tragic bookend to a bloody month: The first week of September also saw … Read more